A little over six months ago I was on the way home from picking up Bentley (fka Webber), the new addition to our new family. It was 10 hours in the car to and from San Francisco.
It all started a couple of days prior when I received some mail from Muttville. I had never heard of Muttville, but it gave me an idea…
For a few months I had been looking for a rescue dog to join our family. The dog had to be hypoallergenic because of my allergies to most breeds. Every time I found a dog meeting this description, I would either call or go by the rescue to see if the dog was still available, but I was always a little too late, they were always just adopted.
The mailer from Muttville, made a light bulb go off in my head: “Maybe a senior dog would be great for us.” We already had a senior Morkie, who was a little shy and quiet, and would most likely not respond well to a younger dog.
I checked out the Muttville website and found three dogs that fit the description of what we were looking for. I called Muttville to inquire, and during the conversation with the Muttville representative, I mentioned that we had lost a Maltese to a brain tumor in January of 2023, and were now ready to open our home to a dog in need. The Muttville representative told me they currently had a Maltese available named Webber.
After reviewing Webber’s pictures and information, I talked to my husband and we decided to move forward with adopting him. I wasn’t sure what to expect from Webber when I went to pick him up, as we hadn’t met before. All I knew was he was thought to be about 13 years old; he was found hanging around a storage facility for about 2 weeks; he had no teeth, but was relatively healthy.
I arrived at Muttville and he was brought to me. He was so lively and loving. He gave me a kiss and jumped in my arms. We finished up at Muttville and upon leaving, I opened the car door and he hopped right in with the agility of a dog half his age. His enthusiasm said to me that he was “ready to go,” and begin the next chapter of his life. On the drive home, he seemed comfortable and slept most of the way.
It was late when we got home, and Webber met his new dad and his brother Tucker (the Morkie), they seemed to get along. He slept very soundly that night. The next day my husband and I noticed he wasn’t really responding to the name Webber, so we decided he could pick his own name. After saying a couple of names,“Bentley” was mentioned, and his ears perked up, he seemed to like it! Maybe it was the name given to him earlier in his life? But whatever the reason, Webber became Bentley.
Since then Bentley has become mom’s little buddy; he goes with me everywhere. He loves going for walks (and he can walk a long time!), just sitting or running around in the backyard, hanging out with the family, and partaking in a few too many treats. He makes me laugh each time he runs top speed from the back yard to the kitchen and spins around real fast, when it’s treat time.
Bentley is a loving and devoted little guy who brings a lot of joy to our family. We’re not sure how much time we have together, but we’ll enjoy it! That long drive was one of the best things I’ve ever done! I believe dogs find you, not the other way around. When I look back at how everything aligned for Bentley to become part of our family, I believe this even more.
Tracey Loder
11/21/23
Are you the proud parent of a Muttville dog? Send us your story! Include three of your favorite photos and send it to success_stories@muttville.org with the subject line 'Success Story'.
